


Candy Bars Lead to Catharsis

by Remember_to_write



Category: DC Animated Universe, DCU (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-19
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-09-12 06:21:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9059272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Remember_to_write/pseuds/Remember_to_write
Summary: Jason and the Reader in the YJ Universe.





	1. (Prequel) Written in the Stars

**Author's Note:**

> This work was also posted on Tumblr and Wattpad with the same name.

“You know, you can’t see the stars in Gotham.” Jason said quietly. “The pollution and clouds pretty much block out most of the light.”

He and Y/N were at the very top of Mount Justice. They were lying on their backs and looking at the sky. It was quiet. There were no missions or teammates or nosy older siblings, just the two of them below and the celestial bodies above.

“I’ve always loved the stars and the stories the constellations tell.” Y/N sighed

“What kind of stories?” Jason said, turning onto his side to look at her.

“Well, there used to be a huge constellation for the Greek hero Jason’s ship, but it was so big they divided it into three smaller constellations. There is also Perseus and Andromeda. A pair of husband and wife constellations. And then my personal favorite, Gemini.” Y/N explained quietly.

“Gemini? Why is that one your favorite?”

“Well, it is the story of two brothers, Castor and Pollux. They were twins with different fathers. Castor’s father was a great king and Pollux’s father was the greek god Zeus. They spent their lives together, going on grand adventures, but Castor was mortal. So when he lay dying, Pollux asked his father Zeus to take away his mortality so that he could be with his brother. But instead of killing Pollux, he made the two of them immortal and they live forever together as the constellation Gemini.”

They sat in silence for several minutes. 

“It’s a nice story, but I don’t think I could live with anyone forever.” Jason said, shaking his head

“Not even me?” Y/N teased.

“Okay, maybe you.” Jason admitted.

“Well, good because you are stuck with me the rest of your life.” Y/N joked

“Oh really? What makes you think I’ll let you stay?”

“Because you love me and I love you and we are going to be friends for as long as we are both alive.” Y/N said, suddenly serious.

“Well, in that case we should get married.” Jason joked.

“Jay, I was being serious.” Y/N said, sitting up.

“And so was I. I think we could do it. Get married, have a few kids, stay together until we are old and gray.” Jason said thoughtfully.

“I don’t want it to end when we are old and gray though.” Y/N said quietly.

“Well, then I promise you, Y/N L/N, that we will always be best friends and I will love you until time itself runs out.” Jason said, sitting up and grabbing her hands.

“That’s a nice thought, but we are still kids. We haven’t even graduated yet.” Y/N said, pulling one of her hands out of his grasp to push the hair off his forehead.

“That doesn’t matter. I know we’ll be together forever.” Jason whispered as he pulled Y/N closer.

“Hey, Y/N, what are you thinking about?” a voice broke through her reminiscing.

“Oh, nothing Tim. Just remembering something.” Y/N said with a shake of her head. She was no longer a cute little teenager making promises life would break. She was an adult who had been through alot in that few years. 

“You seemed pretty into it. You want talk about it?” Tim asked as he moved to stand next to her. They stood in the grotto, looking at the monuments to the fallen. Y/N didn’t go down there often, she found that she would spend far too much time in the past if she did, but today was a special day. The monument in question was of a teenage boy. He was tall and too skinny. The color of his eyes hidden by a mask, but Y/N would never forget what they looked like. 

“So you knew him?” Tim asked, his voice once again bringing Y/N back to the present.

“Yeah, we were friends. Best friends in fact.” Y/N admitted 

“Do…. Do you think he would have liked me? Do you think we would have been friends?” Tim asked tentatively.

Y/N thought about it for a minute. “Yeah, maybe not at first, but eventually yeah. He would have picked on you. Teased you mercilessly. But he would also protect you and not let you beat yourself up over things you can’t change. Ja- um, Robin always had a hard time telling people how he felt at first. He didn’t talk to me for months. He was very careful about who he trusted.” Y/N mused before letting silence fall again.

“Is it hard to be around me? I mean, I replaced him and all.”

At that, Y/N turned to look at him. He wore the same type of dark sunglasses Jason had been forced to wear, the kind that hid your eyes from the world. “At first it was. But you aren’t him. You are you. You didn’t replace him.” Y/N said firmly

Tim smiled and wrapped his arms around her. Y/N stiffened for a minute before relaxing and hugging him back. She pretended not to feel his tears on her shoulder and he pretended not to feel hers on his. 

“We should head up before Nightwing comes looking for us.” Y/N said, pulling back and wiping her eyes.

“Yeah, that would probably be for the best.” Tim said as he headed for the door. “You coming?” he said when she didn’t move.

“Yeah, I just wanted to say goodbye.” Y/N admitted sheepishly, but Tim just nodded and continued walking.

She turned and looked at the hologram of the boy she had loved and lost. 

“Bye, Jaybird.”


	2. Candy Bars Lead To Catharsis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I went back and edited this chapter to bring it up to the quality level that I currently write at.

“Here, I got you this because I remember them being your favorite.” Jason offered a candy bar to the h/c woman standing across from him. She turned with unseeing eyes and walked coldly away.

He slowly let his hand still holding the rejected offering fall to his side. He had known that coming back and rejoining the team wasn’t going to be easy, but he hadn’t realized how hard rebuilding a broken relationship would be.

“You know it may seem like she hates you, but she is really just hurting.” offered M'gann who had watched the entire exchange.

“You think so? Because she hasn’t said a word to me since I came back. Hell, she hasn’t even looked at me.” Jason said, slumping against wall and dropping the chocolate.

“Look, I cannot solve this for you. If you want to repair your friendship with Y/N, you need to actually talk to her.” M'gann said firmly as she walked away. They had a mission coming up and everyone was needed for a meeting. As everyone filed in, Y/N made sure she was as far from Jay as possible, moving to the other end of the group when he walked into the room.

Jason tried to pay attention to what was going on, but he kept getting distracted by thoughts of Y/N and their past. He had missed her more than he ever thought possible and having her act this way towards him was almost as painful as dying had been.

“-Everybody move out.” Nightwing finished.

“Wait, where am I assigned to?” Jason asked, thinking he had missed his name being called.

“You and s/h/n are staying back to run mission control.” Nightwing said as the team exited the room to prepare for the mission.

“I don’t think that is such a good idea.” Jason said, glancing over to see the girl in question.

“Look, you two are going to have to work through this at some point or another. Until then, neither of you is going on a mission. I cannot risk the lives of my team just because you two cannot communicate.” At that, Dick turned and walked out of the room, leaving the two of them alone to start preparing for their end of the operation.

Jason sighed, knowing that his brother and team leader was right. He waited until the entire team had left to approach his former best friend.

“So…. Is there anything you would like to talk about?” Jason said, mentally berating himself for not being able to come up with something better than that

“No.” Y/N replied shortly, not even bothering to look in his direction.

Silence stretched awkwardly over several minutes as both of them attempted to keep busy.

“Look. I know I haven’t made the best decisions,” Jason started “but I am trying to do better. I’ve stopped killing people. Mostly. And I rejoined the team and I’m talking to Bruce. Well, answering his calls sometimes and-”

“Is that what you think this is about? Your mistakes?” Y/N said, finally turning to meet his eyes. “I couldn’t care less about what you have done or how your relationship with Bruce is going. Which if you recall, you and Bruce weren’t in the best place before you died either.”

“Then what is this about? You won’t speak to me, won’t look at me, you cannot even be in the same room as me. If this isn’t about what I have done, what is it about?” Jason said, slightly relieved

“It is about what you didn’t do. You were my best friend, Jay. I told you things nobody else knows and you did the same. We were partners, soulmates even. Then you died and I was heartbroken.” Y/N said, moving to stand in front of him.

“But I am back now and I am trying to make things right.” Jay interjected, pushing her h/c hair out of her face.

“You don’t even remember, do you?” Y?N scoffed whilst batting his hand away. Seeing the confusion on his face, she continued “A couple weeks after the ‘Red Hood’ started screwing around in Gotham, I was doing recon in Gotham. I went undercover in some sleezy bar that supposedly was housing a human trafficking ring. The info turned out to be false, there were no people being sold there. However, it just so happened that the bar had attracted the interests of the big man himself.” Y/N said mockingly, distancing herself from Jason.

Jason, sensing there was more, stood silently awaiting the rest of the story.

“The Red Hood tried to shoot up the joint, but I managed to distract him by picking a fight. There was something so familiar about the way he moved and the way he held himself. A few days later, Nightwing announced you were back and I was ecstatic. Then he told us what you were doing. I couldn’t believe that I had seen you. Been so close to you, and you hadn’t recognized me. You were back and instead of looking me up, you became a crime lord. So you see, I’m not mad that you let yourself become everything we fought against. I am mad that you didn’t give me a chance to talk you out of it.” Y/N finished, panting and letting her tears finally fall.

“You thought I forgot about you.” Jason said, finally understanding what the problem was.

Y/N nodded, sniffling. She wrapped her arms around herself as she tried to hold back her sobs.

“When I came back to Gotham, I was in a bad place. I was so full of rage and hate and pain, and I needed to work it out. I knew if I went to you, you would just talk me out of it and I convinced myself I couldn’t let that happen. There were so many nights that I found myself outside of your apartment. Hell, I even walked around your campus one day, hoping I would see your face. That night at the bar, I knew you were there. I was the one who gave the fake info. I just needed to be close to you, even if we were fighting. I am not going to make any excuses for my actions or the pain it has caused you, but I want to apologize for everything. I am sorry I didn’t listen to you and got myself killed, I am sorry I didn’t come straight to you when I got back, I am sorry I picked a fight with you just to be close to you, and, most of all, I am sorry that I let you think I forgot you.” Jason finished with tears in his eyes as he wrapped his arms around the crying girl.

“I’m sorry I ignored you when you came back and made you think I hated you.” sobbed Y/N

“Does this mean we can be best friends again?” Jason said, pulling back to look at her tear stained face.

Y/N smiled and wiped the tears from her face. “Only if you give me that candy bar you offered earlier.”

In the bioship, not too far from homebase where Y/N and Jason stood, M’gann and Nightwing were patiently awaiting to see if their gamble would pay off. 

Their mission was very real, but it hadn’t required quite as many people as Nightwing had assigned. He and M’gann had made sure that Y/N and Jason would be alone so that they would be forced to work out their differences. 

M’gann was keeping a watch on how things went down. She wasn’t reading their minds so much as the emotional energy in the room. She felt it turn from angry and sad to hopeful and relieved. She turned to Nightwing with a smile on her face.

“Mission accomplished.”


	3. I Swear That I Will Never Leave

“So, you and Jason seem to have worked everything out.” M’gann said. She and Y/N were in her room hanging out. They tried to set aside some time every week to relax and talk about life. Today, they were just lounging around, Y/N laying on the bed and M’gann was sitting next to her.

“Yeah, we haven’t really talked about what our relationship was before he died though. We were almost more than friends, but then…” Y/N’s voice trailed off. “Anyways, I don’t think either of us really know how to bring it up at this point. So much has happened it just sort of feels like we are just meant to stay friends.”

“Is that what you want though?” M’gann asked

“Are you kidding? I have been in love with him since I was 15, of course I would love to be more than friends. I guess I am afraid of losing him again. Like we just became friends again, what if he just wants it to stay that way?” Y/N sat up and looked M’gann in the eyes.

“You’ll never know until you talk to him.” M’gann pointed out.

Y/N sat in thought for several seconds. “You’re right.” She sighed. “I’ll talk to him tonight. After the mission.”

Y/N was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of a bullet ricocheting off the wall next to her head. 

“I thought Nightwing said this mission was supposed to easy and simple.” Jason griped as he and Y/N took cover behind a thick metal wall. They were doing recon when they were ambushed. 

“Are our missions ever easy and simple?” Y/N said, peeking around the corner. She jumped back when a bullet pinged off the wall.

“Fair point. We need to get out of here. There are only two gunman so I’ll cover while you get out. We’ll rendezvous at the docks.” Jason said as he readied his guns. Y/N nodded and readied herself to run. Jason popped up and fired at the gunman while Y/N headed out the door. Jason’s rubber bullets incapacitated both of the gunman and he followed in Y/N’s footsteps. 

However, a large explosion ripped through the building right has he reached the door.

Y/N heard the noise right as she reached the docks and turned around just in time to see the warehouse go up in flames. Her mind immediately assumed the worst.

_ Jason... _

She fell to her knees as the roof caved in. Air came in and out of her lungs in short burst as if oxygen was no longer enough to sustain her.

She closed her eyes and she was sixteen again. Standing on the training room floor of Mount Justice and hearing that her best friend and first love had lost his life. That day, Conner had caught her before she hit the ground, but right now the only comfort she had was the cold damp wood underneath her palms.

When she opened her eyes, all she saw was the same horrific sight. Her ears were filled with the sound of her own heartbeat and the sobs that threatened to break her whole body apart. 

She should probably move. 

Contact Nightwing and tell him.

Tell him...

But she was so frozen in her own grief she couldn’t even think of what she should be doing.

She pulled her legs up to her chest and pressed her forehead into them. She felt her tears soak through the fabric of her suit, but she didn’t care. She felt a pair of hands gently cradle her face before tilting it up. When she opened her eyes, she found a pair of bright blue ones staring back at her. They held a mixture of fear, concern, and love. 

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Jason asked urgently. Instead of answering him, Y/N launched herself at him, wrapping him tightly in her arms and burying her face in his chest. He didn’t hesitate to return her embrace. They sat like this for several moments before he heard her mumble into his chest. 

“I thought you died. I heard the explosion and saw the building collapse and I thought I lost you again.” Y/N sobbed. Jason pulled back and took her face in his hands. “I’m not dead. I’m okay. I didn’t leave you again. I promise you everything is going to be fine.” He soothed as his thumbs gently rubbed the sides of her face. She covered his hands with her own and sighed. He slowly leaned forward and kissed the tears off her face.

“I love you.” Y/N whispered. Jason paused with his lips on her forehead. He pulled back and stared deeply into her eyes.

“I love you so much.” Y/N said a little bit louder. “And I thought I lost you before I got to tell you that. I know we talked about stuff when we were younger, but then you died and since you came back we haven’t brought up any of that up again, but I needed to tell you.” 

“You know, when I thought you hated me, I was terrified that I would never hear you say those words. And then when we worked it out and became friends again, I thought I was lucky just to have you close again. I have been in love with you since the moment I met you and I cannot imagine my life without you in it.” Jason said with a tender smile. Y/N let out a laugh that was partially a sob and surged forward to press her mouth to his. Jason let out a surprised hum before kissing her back. 

They probably would have sat there like that forever had Nightwing not chosen that moment to show up. “So I take it the mission was a success?” He said with a smug smile.

“Way to ruin a perfectly good moment, Richard.” Jason said irritatedly. “I almost died. Again. I think that means I should be able to declare my love for my best friend and kiss her senseless without you watching the entire time.”

Dick just smiled and laughed before disappearing into the night. “God, he sure knows how to ruin a moment. I swear to god I am kicking his ass when we get back to-” Y/N cut him off with a kiss and all the anger melted out of him. When they pulled away, they were both breathless. Y/N smiled and pushed the hair off his forehead. 

“You know sometimes you talk too much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not going to say that this is the last fic in this series, but this is the last part I had planned out. That being said: I hope you have enjoyed my writing <3


End file.
